Flame resistant, high visibility fabrics and methods of manufacture thereof

ABSTRACT

A fabric for use in safety apparel is taught. The fabric comprises a first yarn comprising modacrylic run in a weft direction of said fabric and a second yarn comprising polyester run in a warp direction of said fabric. The fabric meets visibility requirements governed by CSA Z96 in Canada and by ANSI/ISEA 107 in the US and applicable international standards; and meets requirements for flame resistance governed in Canada by CAN/CGSB-155.20, CAN/CGSB 155.22, and CSA Z462; and in the US by NFPA 2112, NFPA 1971, NFPA 1975, NFPA 1977 and NFPA 70E and applicable international standards. A method of manufacturing a fabric is further taught, said method comprising the steps of running a first yarn in a weft direction, said first yarn comprising modacrylic and running a second yarn in a warp direction, said second yarn comprising polyester, wherein said method produces a fabric meeting visibility requirements and meeting requirements for flame resistance.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to fabrics having flame resistance andhigh visibility for use in safety apparel and apparel components.

BACKGROUND

Safety apparel and garments are required to meet strict guidelines forvisibility. This means that the fabric used to make such apparel shouldbe dyeable in high visibility colours. In Canada, visibilityrequirements are governed by CSA Z96 and in the US by ANSI/ISEA 107 andapplicable international standards.

Safety apparel and apparel parts should also meet requirements for flameresistance. Flame resistance requirements are governed in Canada byCAN/CGSB-155.20, CAN/CGSB 155.22 and CSA Z462; and in the US by NFPA2112, NFPA 1971, NFPA 1977, NFPA 1975 and NFPA 70E and applicableinternational standards.

To ensure longevity and proper fit of safety apparel it is alsoimportant that the fabrics used to make such apparel have little to noshrinkage in use or in laundering. Stain resistance is also important inensuring that the high visibility of safety apparel and apparelcomponents are not marred by staining or permanent soiling.

While a number of fabrics may meet one or more of the safetyrequirements and desired qualities listed above, it is very hard tomanufacture a suitable fabric that meets all requirements and qualities.Furthermore, for the purposes of commercial manufacture and sale it isalso desirable that the apparel or apparel component, and hence thefabric from which they are made, not be prohibitively expensive.

Some examples of prior art fabrics for use in safety apparel includeU.S. Pat. No. 6,706,650 to Gibson et al., which teaches a fabric formedsubstantially of modacrylic yarns and a cationic dye applied to saidfabric. U.S. Pat. No. 7,419,922 also to Gibson et al., teaches a fabricformed of a first yarn that comprises a blend of modacrylic andconventional fibers, and a second yarn that comprises a blend ofanti-static fibers with conventional fibers or with modacrylic.

A need still exists in the art for fabrics that can be dyed to meet highvisibility requirements, that meet flame resistance requirements, andthat are also colour-fast, and affordable.

SUMMARY

A fabric for use in safety apparel is taught. The fabric comprises afirst yarn comprising modacrylic run in a weft direction of said fabricand a second yarn comprising polyester run in a warp direction of saidfabric. The fabric meets high visibility requirements governed by CSAZ96 in Canada and by ANSI/ISEA 107 in the US; and meets requirements forflame resistance governed in Canada by CAN/CGSB-155.20 and CSA Z462; andin the US by NFPA 2112, NFPA 70E, NFPA 1971, NFPA 1975 and NFPA 1977.

A method of manufacturing a fabric is further taught, said methodcomprising the steps of running a first yarn in a weft direction, saidfirst yarn comprising modacrylic and running a second yarn in a warpdirection, said second yarn comprising polyester, wherein said methodproduces a fabric meeting visibility requirements governed by CSA Z96 inCanada and by ANSI/ISEA 107 in the US; and meeting requirements forflame resistance governed in Canada by CAN/CGSB-155.20 and CSA Z462; andin the US by NFPA 2112, NFPA 1971, NFPA 1975, NFPA 1977 and NFPA 70E.

It is to be understood that other aspects of the present invention willbecome readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the followingdetailed description, wherein various embodiments of the invention areshown and described by way of illustration. As will be realized, theinvention is capable for other and different embodiments and its severaldetails are capable of modification in various other respects, allwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.Accordingly the drawings and detailed description are to be regarded asillustrative in nature and not as restrictive.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF VARIOUS EMBODIMENTS

The description that follows and the embodiments described therein areprovided by way of illustration of an example, or examples, ofparticular embodiments of the principles of various aspects of thepresent invention. These examples are provided for the purposes ofexplanation, and not of limitation, of those principles and of theinvention in its various aspects.

The present invention relates to fabrics for use in making safetyapparel and components of apparel. More particularly the presentinvention provides fabrics that meet Canadian and US standard guidelinesfor high visibility and for flame resistant textiles.

The present fabrics are more preferably affixable to or with any numberof secondary materials to impart desired qualities such reflectiveness.The present fabric can be sewed, adhered or laminated onto secondarymaterials, or conversely secondary materials can be sewn, adhered orlaminated onto the present fabric.

For example it is possible to laminate reflective tapes, fabrics, orfilms such as 3M™ Scotchlite™ Reflective Material products on to thepresent fabrics.

Most preferably the present fabric is used in the manufacture of highvisibility, flame resistant bands or tape for use as high visibilitytrim on safety apparel.

The present fabrics may be woven in any number of weave configurationsincluding but not limited to plain, twill, and satin weave. The presentfabrics can also be knitted fabrics. Most preferably, the presentfabrics are woven in a 8×4 warp-faced twill configuration.

The present fabric is preferably made up of a polyester or polyesterblend yarn run in the warp direction of the fabric and a modacrylic ormodacrylic blend run in the weft, or fill, direction.

Modacrylics are understood to generally include any fiber that has alower acrylonitrile level (35-85%) than ordinary acrylic fiber in itsmake-up. Modacrylics are known in the art for being inherently flameresistant. That is, they do not melt or drip or continue to burn when asource of ignition is removed. Modacrylics also present goodcolorfastness and can be washed without loss of color. Howevermodacrylics are expensive and also have a tendency to shrink under highheat exposure.

The modacrylic blend of the present invention can be modacrylic blendedwith any number of conventional fibres including polyester, cotton,wool, rayon, glass, minerals or aramids. The modacrylic blend ispreferably a modacrylic-nylon blend, preferably comprised of between50%-100% modacrylic and between 0% to 50% nylon. Most preferably themodacrylic blend is a 90% modacrylic/10% nylon blend.

The polyester of the present invention can be any type of polyesterknown in the art so long as it meets requirements for strength andcolour-fastness. Polyesters show good color-fastness and can be dyed tothe desired high visibility range of colors including high visibilityyellow and high visibility orange. Polyester fabrics are also strong,relatively inexpensive and also exhibit excellent dimensional stability.

Polyester blends that can be used for the present invention includeblends of polyester with nylon, cotton, wool, glass, mineral, aramids,rayon and combinations thereof. More preferably, polyester blendscomprise from between 70% to 100% polyester and from between 0% and 30%of the other material or combinations of materials.

While flame resistant polyester can be used in the present invention itis noted by the present inventors that in the particular weave or knitconfiguration of the present fabrics, flame resistant polyester is notrequired. By weaving a modacrylic or modacrylic blend in the weftdirection, the inventors have found that sufficient flame resistance isimparted to the final fabric to meet flame resistance regulations forthe safety apparel industry. In flame or heat conditions, the non-flameresistant polyester yarn component of the present fabric may be seen tosoften or melt, but not catch fire and will not continue to burn if theflame source is removed. In this way, an entirely non-flame resistantpolyester yarn can be used in the warp direction while still meetingflame resistance requirements.

In an optional embodiment case of using a polyester filament fibre asthe yarn, weaving a polyester filament improves smoothness and flatnessof the surface of the resulting fabric and can improve adherence ofsecondary materials over polyester staple fibres.

Fibre content of the fabric as described can be adjusted to maximizedesired properties and minimize undesired properties of the resultantfabric. As described above, in non-flame resistant polyester can be usedin the warp direction of the present invention. In such cases a maximumlimit of non-flame resistant polyester is preferred to maintain flameresistant characteristics of the overall fabric. To minimize shrinkagedue to heat, otherwise described as maximizing thermal stability, amaximum limit of modacrylic is preferred. Most preferably the fibrecontent of the present fabric is 67% modacrylic, 26% polyester and 7%nylon.

The present fabric is dyeable by conventional dyeing methods such as ina jet dyeing machine to obtain high visibility colours such asfluorescent Yellow-Green, fluorescent Orange-Red or fluorescent Red huesthat meet luminescence and chromacity requirements. In one example, acationic dye may be used to dye the present fabric.

The present fabric may also optionally be finished or chemicallyfinished to improve such qualities as dimensional stability and reducedshrinkage, colour fastness and texture or feel. Such finishingtreatments are well known and understood by a person of skill in theart.

The previous description of the disclosed embodiments is provided toenable any person skilled in the art to make or use the presentinvention. Various modifications to those embodiments will be readilyapparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles definedherein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from thespirit or scope of the invention. Thus, the present invention is notintended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but is to beaccorded the full scope consistent with the claims, wherein reference toan element in the singular, such as by use of the article “a” or “an” isnot intended to mean “one and only one” unless specifically so stated,but rather “one or more”. All structural and functional equivalents tothe elements of the various embodiments described throughout thedisclosure that are known or later come to be known to those of ordinaryskill in the art are intended to be encompassed by the elements of theclaims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicatedto the public regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitlyrecited in the claims.

1. A fabric for use in safety apparel, said fabric comprising: a. afirst yarn comprising modacrylic run in a weft direction of said fabric;and b. a second yarn comprising polyester run in a warp direction ofsaid fabric, wherein said fabric meets visibility requirements governedby CSA Z96 in Canada and by ANSI/ISEA 107 in the US and applicableinternational standards; and meets requirements for flame resistancegoverned in Canada by CAN/CGSB-155.20, CAN/CGSB 155.22and CSA Z462; andin the US by NFPA 2112, NFPA 1971, NFPA 1975, NFPA 1977 and NFPA 70E andapplicable international standards.
 2. The fabric of claim 1, whereinsaid first yarn comprises a blend of modacrylic fibres with one or moreconventional fibres selected from the group consisting of nylon, rayon,polyester, cotton, wool, glass, minerals or aramids, and combinationsthereof.
 3. The fabric of claim 2, wherein said first yarn comprises ablend of modacrylic fibres with nylon fibres.
 4. The fabric of claim 3,wherein said first yarn comprises a blend of from 70%-100% modacrylicand from 0% to 30% nylon.
 5. The fabric of claim 4, wherein the firstyarn comprises 90% modacrylic fibres and 10% nylon fibres.
 6. The fabricof claim 1, wherein said second yarn is selected from the groupconsisting of flame resistant polyester and non-flame resistantpolyester.
 7. The fabric of claim 1, wherein said second yarn comprisesa blend of polyester fibres with alternate fibres selected from thegroup consisting of nylon, cotton, wool, glass, mineral, aramids, rayonand combinations thereof.
 8. The fabric of claim 7, wherein said secondyarn comprise a blend of from 70% to 100% polyester and from 0% to 30%alternate fibres.
 9. The fabric of claim 1 wherein the fibre compositionof the fabric is 67% modacrylic, 26% polyester and 7% nylon.
 10. Thefabric of claim 1, wherein said fabric is affixable to one or moresecondary materials.
 11. The fabric of claim 10, wherein said fabric issewable onto said one or more secondary materials.
 12. The fabric ofclaim 10, wherein said one or more secondary materials are sewable ontosaid fabric.
 13. The fabric of claim 10, wherein said one or moresecondary materials are adhereable onto said fabric.
 14. The fabric ofclaim 10, wherein said one or more secondary materials are laminatableonto said fabric.
 15. The fabric of claim 14, wherein said one or moresecondary materials laminatable onto the fabric comprise reflectivetapes, reflective fabrics and reflective films.
 16. The fabric of claim1, wherein said fabric is used in the manufacture of high visibility,flame resistant trim on safety apparel.
 17. The fabric of claim 1,wherein said fabric weave configuration is selected from the groupconsisting of plain, twill, satin weave and combinations thereof. 18.The fabric of claim 1, wherein said fabric is a knitted fabric.
 19. Thefabric of claim 17, wherein said fabric is woven in a 8×4 warp-facedtwill configuration.
 20. The fabric of claim 1, wherein said fabric isdyeable to obtain high visibility colours by conventional dyeingmethods.
 21. The fabric of claim 20, wherein the fabric is dyeable tofluorescent yellow-green, fluorescent red-orange or fluorescent redhues.
 22. The fabric of claim 20, wherein the fabric is dyeable withcationic dyes.
 23. The fabric of claim 1, wherein said fabric ischemically finishable to enhance dimensional stability, reduceshrinkage, improve colour fastness and enhance feel.
 24. A method formanufacturing a fabric for use in safety apparel, said method comprisingthe steps of: a. running a first yarn in a weft direction, said firstyarn comprising modacrylic; and b. running a second yarn in a warpdirection, said second yarn comprising polyester, wherein said methodproduces a fabric meeting visibility requirements governed by CSA Z96 inCanada and by ANSI/ISEA 107 in the US and applicable internationalstandards; and meeting requirements for flame resistance governed inCanada by CAN/CGSB-155.20, CAN/CGSB 155.22 and CSA Z462; and in the USby NFPA 2112, NFPA 1971, NFPA 1975, NFPA 1977 and NFPA 70E andapplicable international standards.
 25. The method of claim 24, whereinsaid first yarn comprises a blend of modacrylic fibres with one or moreconventional fibres selected from the group consisting of nylon, rayon,polyester, cotton, wool, glass, minerals or aramids, and combinationsthereof.
 26. The method of claim 25, wherein said first yarn comprises ablend of modacrylic fibres with nylon fibres.
 27. The method of claim26, wherein said first yarn comprises a blend of from 70%-100%modacrylic and from 0% to 30% nylon.
 28. The method of claim 27, whereinthe first yarn comprises 90% modacrylic fibres and 10% nylon fibres. 29.The method of claim 24, wherein said second yarn is selected from thegroup consisting of flame resistant polyester and non-flame resistantpolyester.
 30. The method of claim 24, wherein said second yarncomprises a blend of polyester fibres with alternate fibres selectedfrom the group consisting of nylon, cotton, wool, glass, mineral,aramids, rayon and combinations thereof.
 31. The method of claim 30,wherein said second yarn comprise a blend of from 70% to 100% polyesterand from 0% to 30% alternate fibres.
 32. The method of claim 24, furthercomprising affixing said fabric to one or more secondary materials. 33.The method of claim 32, wherein affixing comprises sewing said fabriconto said one or more secondary materials.
 34. The method of claim 32,wherein affixing comprises sewing said one or more secondary materialsonto said fabric.
 35. The method of claim 32, wherein affixing comprisesadhereing said one or more secondary materials onto said fabric.
 36. Themethod of claim 32, wherein affixing comprises laminating said one ormore secondary materials onto said fabric.
 37. The method of claim 36,wherein said one or more secondary materials comprise reflective tapes,reflective fabrics and reflective films.
 38. The method of claim 24,further comprising manufacturing said fabric into high visibility, flameresistant trim on safety apparel.
 39. The method of claim 24, whereinrunning said first yarn and said second yarn comprising weaving saidfirst yarn and sais second yarn.
 40. The method of claim 24, whereinrunning said first yarn and said second yarn comprising knitting saidfirst yarn and sais second yarn.
 41. The method of claim 24, furthercomprising dyeing said fabric to obtain high visibility colours byconventional dyeing methods.
 42. The method of claim 41, furthercomprising dyeing the fabric with cationic dyes.
 43. The method of claim24, further comprising chemically finishing said fabric to enhancedimensional stability, reduce shrinkage, improve colour fastness andenhance feel.